On campus: Will McNamara of Dartmouth second in Ivy League MVP voting

In a perfect world, Will McNamara's final act as a football player at Dartmouth would have featured him hoisting the Bushnell Cup as the Ivy League's most valuable player.

During the awards ceremony at the Waldorf-Astoria hotel in New York City, he would have thanked everyone who deemed him worthy of the honor.

Even though the 2012 St. Rita graduate placed second to Penn linebacker Tyler Drake, it was still worth the wait.

"It was an awesome experience," McNamara said. "This was something that I had set a goal for myself to achieve. It was great to go to New York City and hang out with my family and friends. We saw a play, and we saw the city, and we were able to take a look around. We got a small glimpse of New York, and that was cool.

"To be up for that award means a lot to me and my family. It's kind of tough not to win, but it's all good."

McNamara's senior season at Dartmouth was full of accolades. The Oak Lawn resident was a unanimous All-Ivy League choice for the second consecutive season after leading the Big Green in tackles with 69 and ranking fifth in the league.

One of Dartmouth's three captains, McNamara also finished second in the conference in interceptions with four and also had four pass breakups. McNamara added 31/2 tackles for loss with one sack.

"This season was a ton of fun," McNamara said. "It was a roller-coaster ride. We were 6-0, and then we lost a tough one to Harvard. But we caught a break and were able to win the conference for the first time in 19 years.

"I won the conference with my guys and my brothers, and it was one hell of a journey. It was great. It was a feeling of satisfaction because we knew we had a good team coming into the season. We had a lot of guys coming back, and we knew we could do it. To go out and put up a banner for the school is something we were satisfied with and happy to do."

For his career at Dartmouth, McNamara finished with 188 tackles, eight interceptions — including three returned for touchdowns — seven pass breakups and two forced fumbles. He also was chosen the Ivy League's defensive player of the week on three occasions.

"I had some individual goals, but the team goal was to win the Ivy League," McNamara said. "And we achieved that.

"I played four years for Dartmouth, and I had a great run. This is something that I'll look back on and be very proud of. The first I had heard of Dartmouth was as a junior in high school. How I've grown and developed over the four years and all that I and my teammates have accomplished, it's been unbelievable."

Having been recognized as a scholar-athlete at Ohio State University in each of the last two seasons and an Academic All-Big Ten honoree last year, it seems fitting that the primary strength in David Gust's game can be found under his scarlet and gray helmet.

"I'm a very smart hockey player," Gust...

(Mike Walsh)

As for his future, McNamara will graduate in June with a degree in government.

"Our coach was joking with me, and he asked me what I want to do," McNamara said. "I told him that I'd like to stick around and play football at Dartmouth.

A version of this article appeared in print on December 13, 2015, in the Sports section of the Chicago Tribune with the headline "WILL POWER - St. Rita grad McNamara second in voting for Ivy League's football MVP - On campus" —
Today's paperToday's paper | Subscribe